Hever Parish Council support the Article 4 Directions placed by SDC on land bordering both Hever Parish and Edenbridge Town (Newhouse Farm Lane), with this being communicated to the current owners, the current tenants, the buyer, the buyer’s agent and the two companies marketing the land.  We would encourage restrictions to be continuous and renewed or extended in good time.

 

  • We believe this is justified in order to control works that could threaten the character of an area of acknowledged importance, to protect the wellbeing of the area, noting the exceptional circumstances of the location (Green Belt and directly on the boundary of the High Weald AONB) where the exercise of permitted development rights would harm local amenity, the historic environment and the proper planning of the area.   This rural landscape is characterised by rough grassland, an irregular patterns of small to medical scale fields punctuated with small woods and frequent narrow strips of woodland.

 

HPC supports the Direction to remove permitted development rights for;

 

  • Development consisting of minor operations
  • Development consisting of means of access to a highway:
  • Development consisting of temporary buildings and structures:
  • Development consisting of temporary use of land:
  • Development consisting of use of land as a caravan site:

 

  • We also welcome that SDC have shared their concerns regarding the way the site is being marketed to KCC Trading Standards who have passed it on further to Wandsworth Trading Standards due to the companies registered location.

 

  • We wish to stress the importance of continuous surveillance, particularly by SDC enforcement in respect of any future potential breaches of the conditions imposed by the Article 4 direction.

 

 

 

References;

SDC Supplementary Planning Documents Countryside Assessment October 2011

The High Weald AONB, Nov 2019

SDC Historic Environment Review Dec 2017

ENV001 Sevenoaks District Green Belt Assessment – Main Report (January 2017)